Only nine counties play hurling to any sort of serious standard, actually.
I would say that 13, maybe 14 countries play rugby to any sort of serious standard.
Of course there is some hurling played in the other 23 counties, but then again tennis is also “played in every county”, and rugby is also played across the other 200 odd countries in the world in a similar manner to how hurling is played across these other 23 counties.
Dalkey are one of the biggest clubs in the country. They beat a rural club with a population of 1,000 in the final. It’s a credit to hurling that two teams with such contrasting backgrounds get to the final. I will accept that a team of Sneachtas and Uactair Reoites winning the club All-Ireland is a blot on the hurling copybook.
Name them
New Zealand
Australia
South Africa
Argentina
England
France
Ireland
Wales
Scotland
Fiji
Samoa
Japan
Italy
Tonga
You forgot Madagascar mate.
its gas to see lads frothing at the mouth over rubbys popularity, insecure simpletons mostly from a gaa background are usually to the front while you just know if the soccer crowd werent plain fucking useless at it they would also be more vocal.
… and Repechage
soccer is the most played sport on the planet but only 10 or 12 countries can play it to any sort of accpetable standard
Stickfighting is taken seriously in about 7 counties. And 3 at most have a chance of winning the All Ireland. Mick the Muldoon frothing at the mouth can’t stand the popularity of rugby
Rugby isn’t popular, that’s the point we’re trying to get across.
Whatever, mate.
The muck savages on here can’t handle the wall to wall press coverage the Lions tour is getting. They can’t turn on their TVs or radio without hearing the latest news from NZ.
These are the same eejits who got a hard on when they heard Etihad was showing the all-Ireland stick hurling final on some of their flights.
Minnows.
You’re one who crows about a country with 4 and half million being so good at rugby, and what that means for its popularity and skill levels globally, and here you are trumpeting a village of 1,000 being good enough to get to an All Ireland Final.
headshot
The only time croke park is full is for the All Ireland final
When the GAA got 30k to that one off showcase in Yankee Stadium they were crowing away.
Rugby annually fills the Las Vegas Sevens. 80k across the event.
That’s not to mention all the other misc rugby events during the year in the US like their internationals or what happened in Chicago last year.
National coverage of the sport on NBC. Fully funded pro Olympic athletes. A major college championship. A new pro league launching.
There are 2,500 rugby clubs and 120,000 players in the US.
Still though, I’m not including the USA as a country that plays rugby seriously, yet we have @mikehunt in here claiming the Kerry hurling team getting a couple of paragraphs in the Kerryman deems them to be a county who plays hurling properly.
Scotland, England and Wales are in the same country sid. If Tonga, Samoa, Japan, Fiji play rugby to a serious standard then Laois, Offaly, Carlow, Westmeath etc. play hurling to a serious standard
In hurling terms, a village with 1,000 people in it is a fucking metropolis.
Really mate?
When is the last time that Westmeath, Laois, Offaly or Carlow beat someone decent in the Provincial Championship?
